(EA03-10-26) Eating Patterns and Metabolic Indicators in Adults: Associations With Glucose, Body Composition, and Resting Metabolic Rate

Name of the scientific conference where the work was recently presented: Public Health Conference

Date on which the work was previously presented at the scientific conference listed above: 4/24/26

Objectives: Prediabetes is a growing health concern shaped by the interactions among biological, behavioral, and social factors. While dietary composition and caloric intake are established risk factors to glucose regulation, the impact of eating patterns such as meal frequency remains unclear due to inconsistent findings across existing literature. This study was a pilot and feasibility observational study to examine the relationship between eating patterns and meal frequency in relation to resting metabolic rate, body composition, and fasting blood glucose levels.

Methods: A sample of 21 adults were recruited from Fairfax, Virginia in March/April of 2026. Participants completed self-report measures assessing sociodemographic information, diet quality (Mini-EAT, NCI Food Scan), physical activity (Physical Activity Vital Sign), and eating patterns (Eating Pattern Questionnaire). Body composition, resting metabolic rate (REE), and fasting blood glucose levels were measured via the BodPod, indirect calorimetry, and glucometer respectively.

Results: Partial correlations REE was positively associated with fasting glucose levels (r=51, p=0.038), aligning with some prior research showing elevated glucose may reflect increased metabolic demand driven by insulin production and glucose cycling. Diet quality was significantly associated with physical activity (r=.70, p=0.002), aligning with previous research showing behavioral clustering of health-promoting habits. More frequent eating occasions were positively associated with greater unhealthy food consumption (r=0.46, p=0.05), indicating a higher meal frequency may increase exposure to energy dense, nutrient poor food. However, neither meal or snack frequency showed significant relationships with body fat percentage or fasting glucose.

Conclusions: Findings suggest meal frequency may not play a significant role in metabolic risk and align with some previous research indicating total caloric intake and diet quality are stronger predictors of metabolic health than meal frequency and timing. Future research should examine these relationships in a larger population composed of individuals with prediabetes to better determine how meal patterns, diet quality, and physical activity influence metabolic health and the progression towards T2D.

Funding Sources: N/A